so... I was driving around and my power steering was going intermittent... and my battery was draining to like nothing... and I started getting worrried... and I popped the hood and the pully to the AC was very hott... so I figured maybe the AC was locking up... I disconnected the power to the AC and all was well... Truck drove great... now... I want to replace AC... unit... but I dont know what exactly to buy... or weather or not I can do it myself... DO new AC's need to be recharged from a auto shop??? or what?

ANd what do I need to buy to fix it?

trucks a 1990 ford f150 4x4 single cab long bed with a 5.0 V8

 

Sounds like your compressor is siezed, and needs to be replaced. Some rebuilt units come with a new clutch, some do not, so before you buy one at Autozone, Pepboys or whomever, ask if it does or not. You'd have to reuse your existing clutch if it doesn't. Though, if you've overheated the compressor replacing the clutch at the same time is good insurance. The compressor is the more expensive part anyway.

And yes, once you replace the AC compressor, you're going to have to evacuate the system (create a vaccum) then refill the system with the appropriate refrigerant. If you don't have the ability to do it yourself, don't try it as you can get seriously injured doing this incorrectly. Let a shop do it.

BTW, if your system isn't pressurized because of the compressor siezing up, you'd more than likely want to replace the $20 dryer (round thing that hangs down on teh passenger side). This absorbs moisture out of the refrigerant as it passes through - but if its been exposed to air - its full of outside moisture and won't be effective once you recharge. You can also bake it in the oven for a while to dry it out, if your wife doesn't mine a piece of metal in her oven next to her casserole